Author: marigold40

 I can’t believe it was five weeks ago that I planted my bean seeds. :)  They took to the twine I tied with just a little guidance.  The morning sun is just peering over the neighbors house, so the leaves are catching some lovely natural light.

 The runners have traveled almost to the top of the window!  I love how they travel.  The leaves are still forming and the color is good, so this week for sure I will add some fertilizer and keep a close eye on it.  I really want to see how healthy my plant can be not in a green house or outdoors, but just in my window. :)

The leaves have continued to grow large and have spread out nicely.  At first I thought I might plant two jars in this window, but I think one leaves the right amount of room for the plant to spread without being cramped.  Like I’ve mentioned before, this is a great project to document when children are not able to be here for every step.  I do look forward to this coming school year when we can plant more things and document the progress together though. :)

I love how the roots are visible and the plant is growing so nicely.  I have detected a little bit of moss growing on the inside of the jar, but I think that is a result of the plant being inside a glass jar; somewhat of a a mini echo system. As far as the jar goes, like with the snap peas, when they finished growing and producing their vegetables I used scissors to cut the roots and take out the whole mess from the jar.  I like reusing my jars and find no reason to break them.  The old plant can then go into a compost pile or in my case the yard bin.

 Please share some of your plant growing adventures! 

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning! :)

 This is the beginning of week four for my bean plant.  I am so happy to see the runners have made it to the twine on the window. :)

 Bean plants are definitely great for anyone that is impatient.  I’m not necessarily saying I am an impatient person, but it is always fun to have the things I plant actually grow.

From here on out I will need to be diligent about fertilization.  The snap peas we grew this spring suffered due to not having enough nutrients.  I also am looking forward to the whole window being covered with green bean leaves! :)

Please share some of your growing adventures!  We would love to hear about them! :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning :)

 At the end of this week, week 3, the runners finally took off!  All four of the bean seeds came up, so now it is just a waiting game.  Beans are one of the easiest plants to start indoors.  This experiment is like the snap pea one, in which the beans will not be transplanted outdoors.  So I hope the plant will produce some nice green beans. :)

 I also enjoy being able to see the roots!  Children can really benefit from getting to see the root systems with indoor plantings.  When we grow things outdoors we don’t see what happens underneath the ground, so being able to see what the entire plant looks like takes away the mystery and misconceptions young minds will often have.  Don’t worry, they fill in where they don’t understand.  It’s just that those assumptions are very creative and not very realistic. :)

 I have been only watering this jar ever other day.  And so far I’ve only added fertilizer twice.  So I will probably add some this weekend.

 One thing I will remember to do next time is not secure my beans to the window.  I would like the plant to be more mobile.  I like to measure the growth of the beans next to children to see how quickly the beans close the  height gap.  Measuring a taller plant next to children is also a great concrete and visual way for children to see the rapid growth.  Planting vegetables and flowers indoors really makes the entire process more accessible to young minds.  Children need to be a part of the whole process and not just he beginning and ending stages.  If we want to help children construct knowledge and build onto what they already know, we have to respect they can handle learning and being an active and responsible part of the experience.

 Enjoy your own planting adventures!  Please like and share this posting and share some stories with me! :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning

 Week three and my bean plant is doing great!  I put up the hooks and string in the window and hopefully the runners will travel in the direction I want them to.  I don’t think there will be a problem with the plant till later.  I just need to make sure I fertilize good.

 I only planted four beans and all four sprouted.  I think bean leaves are so pretty.  They are nice and big and the sun shines through them illuminating the green leaves as a bright light.

• One thing I find fun with indoor plants as well as if you are outdoors, is to shadow draw.  Children love to draw and shadows are another visual they can explore through drawing.  I read a lot about using overhead projectors and light boxes for children to shadow draw, but nature gives us not only an abundance to use in our art, but natural light to do the same things artificial light can.
•  This picture captures the direction the light was casting the hydrangea shadows.  True, the children would have to negotiate who drew first and move with the shadows, but I think that is a great way to work as a team, possibly problem solve and collaborate.  The complexity of the object’s shape and textures will also determine the complexity of the shadow too.

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning!  Come play with us! :)

I’ve mention many times before in previous blog posts how nature is a great way for young children to learn many different skills.  Hydrangeas are one of those hardy flowers that never let me down as far as all the wonderful texture and visual discoveries there are to observe.  The leaves are dark to medium green, shiny, large, and the veins are very prominent which make for wonderful crayon rubbings and many more art infused projects.

The flower petals are clustered together and fit well and the violet color is so vibrant when they first bloom.  This particular type of hydrangea has a second stage of flower color.  Near the end of summer and into fall the flowers will change to a light green and dark red.  So this plant just keeps giving us many more opportunities to observe how nature keeps changing in front of our eyes!

My second week bean sprouts are another great example of why nature is so useful for helping children form strong foundations for future learning.  Once again we have color, shape, multiple leaves and prominent veins.  The roots are not yet showing, but I’m sure they will in the next week of so.  And being a vegetable, children will see how beans first form, what they end up looking like and why we enjoy them.  Counting, color  and shape recognition, texture from the soil, leaves and eventually the bean itself are just a small example of what children can learn from this plant and others. I mustn’t forget patterning too! :)

The mini marigolds are also wonderful examples of nature and the knowledge contained in each vegetative life.  These flowers not only offer differing colors of petals, but the leaves are a wonderful lacy work to count, feel, pattern and admire.  Being able to see the little buds form and then the flower bursting into something so lovely is also a good way to help young minds grasp the concept of change.  Many young children struggle with change, in their home lives, at school and any other areas in their lives in which they interact with people and the environment.  Change is an abstract concept somewhat and nature provides an easy concrete example. As adults we are always very much aware of how important routine with flexibility is and how crucial it is to pay close attention to the emotions  young children experience as things change that are not in their control.  I believe plants are a positive way to expose each to what change is and what it can mean.

I also wanted to mention that young minds will assimilate a large amount of new vocabulary as they grow and are exposed to the differing forms of nature.  Modeling writing, writing  their words for them, accepting what they give,  and keeping growth charts and graphs of various sorts, will all support early literacy as children put on their science caps.  Integrative curriculum strengthens the whole process of questioning, experimenting, discovering, constructing and working as a team.  The summer season is here and I look forward to meeting new friends!  So come join me in a continued learning journey at The Marigold School of Early Learning! :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

  By week two of planting the bean seeds the growth is huge!  I realize beans are one of those vegetables that germinate quite quickly, yet it is still exciting to me. :)

Here is a look at the first pics I took.

I will soon put up string so the runners with have a place to climb.  I hope my bean plant will actually have beans.  I worry since I am keeping them indoors.  However, not till this year did I ever grow things entirely indoors.  In the past I would have transplanted the little sprouts.  

  Please share your indoor or outdoor growing experiments! 

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning :)

 After planting some of the beans, I’ve been impatiently waiting for them to sprout!

 Finally my impatience had a reward!  Little bean sprouts have emerged from the soil! :)

 The entire process of planting seeds from start to finish is my ideal way of incorporating such a nice concrete science project into our curriculum.  However, sometimes students can’t be present for the entire growing period.  So pictures are always great!  Keeping a record of how the seed grows and changes every couple of days is a good way to keep detailed growth observations.

For this science project I will need to construct a climbing apparatus so the bean vines have a place to travel along instead of the short bamboo poles.  I also made sure to wait till they were at this stage to feed them just a little coffee grounds water.  Fertilizing indoor plants that usually live outside is extremely important as we found out with our snap peas and sweet pea flowers. If I remember I will also try beat juice water.  Anything that is organic and natural I prefer using.  After all, food that we grow goes right into our bodies and I want nothing harmful or questionable filtering into my plants.

With my small marigold plant I also added some coffee grounds water.  I’ve noticed that being in jars I only need to water them every other day or every three days depending.  The green leaves are a bit too light green, so I’m hoping some coffee fertilizer will help them turn a richer shade of green.  Any other helpful hints out there? :)

Good luck with all of your gardening adventures this summer!  Share some pictures if you have any!  We would love to see them! :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning

  We grew both small and large marigold flowers indoors this spring.  I love glass jars because we can see the long root system and have such easy visibility as the little seeds sprout and gradually turn into lovely flowers.

Hydrangea Leaf Provocation & Inspiration!

 As I run across ideas to try out for the summer I was so happy to see my hydrangea bush so full and pretty again this year!  Hydrangeas are so hardy! I thought I’d show you all a picture that captures the beginning buds as they turn into the lovely violet flowers!

 I set up an inspiration table with leaves  from the tree I forgot what it’s name is and the hydrangea leaves from my bouquets.  When looking at plants I always notice the wide array of green shades, so I put out as many different shades of green crayons as I could find.  I then proceeded to arrange each picture in a different way.  I like to see if a child will notice and comment on the arrangement differences or if the child will simply push it aside and arrange it as they wish.

Children are free to crayon rub with these leaves because they are rough enough to show all the veins.  They can count the leaves and the veins, trace the leaf or draw it free hand if they are inspired to do so.  They can use each shade of green for whichever method they would like.  Using nature is wonderful for not only the visual appeal, but the exploration of how the leaf is constructed.  Counting comes into play not just with each leaf, but with the crayons too.  Children may also notice the ruffled edges and count each of those as well.

 The word “leaf” is only four letters long and can easily be added to a word wall as another commonly used word in the children’s vocabulary.  Young children already come to preschool with vocabulary they know, so I respect that they can assimilate many, many more words.  I do not expect reading and writing like a kindergarten or first grade aged child, however I believe it is important to expose young minds to our written language. And I have had three year old students in the past who have been able to spell, write and read.  So never put up barriers to a child’s natural capabilities, yet do not push if they are not yet developmentally ready.

Setting up this table I have kept in mind that it is a provocation.  I am trying not to have expectations as to what direction a child could go with this, but I look forward to how each will interpret this “inspirational provocation”.

 Having large windows has been great because the natural light is so abundant! Please let me know what provocations you have recently set up using nature. :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT

The Marigold School of Early Learning

 Provocations are not lessons in which as a Teacher I expect students to immediately engage in.  Provocations are intended to catch a child’s eye, to spark an interest.  That being said, provocations are still concepts I want to teach children.  These concepts are presented in a way that is open and not closed.  Children have room to wonder, question, manipulate, incorporate and eventually construct meaning from either alone or with a fellow classmate.  I do not expect every child to know exactly how to read a provocation.  Sometimes I put out a provocation that I can think of multiple ways of using, yet a child may simply have no interest at that time.  I leave out provocations for the simple fact that on Monday there may be no apparent interest, yet on Tuesday there may be a lot of interest.  Sometimes, as with our own adult minds, children need time to mull over any ideas forming in their sub consciences. 

 Water color pencils were set out one day with paper yet this child had other ideas.  The pencils became part of a sensory exploration experiment.  I had not intended for this to happen, but I did not stop it from unfolding.  Why? Because there is no harm in a child exploring materials as long as no harm is coming to them, their friends or the environment.  These water color pencils are long cylinder shapes and they roll easily.  As a young child is exploring the concepts of shapes being able to roll materials and feel the different textures and motion from the objects is the very act of constructing knowledge.  I can scaffold this concept by adding more of the same shapes of objects or different shapes to see how this child interprets the knew data.  From watching, listening and paying attention to children’s needs for learning I am able to form curriculum from their emerging interests and needs.  Did I intend for this child to simply roll the water colored pencils?  No, I had the idea of this child drawing.  So this was a pleasant surprise that showed me where this child’s desire for knowledge was coming from.

 Comparing the size and shape of the mirror with the cork shapes was not something I had originally thought of.  However, this child had a need to test her hypothesis and so she gathered the materials and went through with measuring. and comparing the size of both objects.  Constructing knowledge based on internal interest is more valuable than forcing concepts onto children.  When we take the time to respect young children and set up environments that promote learning, we are allowing children to learn naturally.  The concepts forced onto children through harsh academic environments do not respect children’s intelligence and desire to learn.  I’ve said this many times before, but learning is life.  Children naturally are insatiable learners.  When I listen to the needs of children I can be a support to their desire to learn.  Learning is for understanding and understanding comes with challenges that are attainable at each age and developmental level.  

 I’ve set up alphabet puzzles as provocations before and no interest was taken.  Then one day interest is strong with these puzzles.  So I can choose to add more tactile letters, picture cards, books, poems or songs to extend the child’s interest.  Emergent curriculum comes directly from what children are doing.  My job is to make sure I really listen, watch and open communication with each child in order for me to support, extend and challenge when appropriate.  This doesn’t mean that children won’t possibly loose interest at some point, but the fact that I value each child’s desire to understand is one of the reasons I love being an Early Childhood Teacher.  I respect and value young minds and want to ensure they have a happy, healthy and developmentally appropriate early start to their long academic careers.

 If you implement an emergent style of curriculum please share your ideas and experiences.  I would love to learn from you too! :)

Heidi Scott, BA & MIT